Two World Hikers

“I want to ride my bicycle, bicycle, bicycle…” – Queen

I have a confession; my hubby and I rarely make time for biking! More often than not, our bikes are collecting dust in the garage! We made it a goal to bike more! The Myra Canyon bike trail is a must-do experience in beautiful British Columbia, Canada! There are 18 trestle bridges, 2 tunnels, and spectacular views along the historic Kettle Valley Railway. If you find yourself in Kelowna BC, you don’t want to miss out on this incredible adventure!

What to Expect:

Total Distance: 15 miles round trip

Difficulty: easy to moderate

Elevation gain: approximately 1,817ft

Time: a couple hours to a half-day bike ride if at a leisurely pace

Route type: out and back

Availability: accessible year-round, best to visit March-November

Cost: Free. If renting a bike and helmet it costs $44/person for 4 hours. To reserve a bike rental, check out Myra Canyon Bike Rentals and Tours

Enjoying the view of one of the historic trestle bridges

Getting there:

Myra Canyon trail is a 40-minute scenic drive from downtown Kelowna. We enjoyed the views of vineyards, golf courses, and orchards along the way! Follow McCulloch Road, then take a right on the gravel Myra Forest Service Road. After a few minutes of driving the service road, there will be a large gravel parking area off to the right. Parking is free (yay!). Myra Canyon Bike Rental is conveniently located at the start of the trail if you did not bring your own bike.

Selfie at the start of the trail!

Description:

Riding along one of the historic wooden trestle bridges

We were simply in awe over the remarkable views! The trail is approximately 7.5 miles one-way and relatively flat. There are 18 historic trestle bridges created with either steel or wood. This site once served as a major railway in the early 1900s. You will also notice the trees have not fully recovered from a massive forest fire in 2003. Portions of the trestle bridges were restored and rebuilt after the fire to preserve the history of this area.

Noticing the damage from the 2003 forest fire

Entering one of the tunnels

Riding through one of the tunnels

There are 2 tunnels on the Myra Canyon Trail. Don’t forget to remove your sunglasses when cycling through the tunnels! It is shockingly dark!

There are plenty of benches along the trail to pause at and take in the scenery. However don’t plan a picnic, it won’t be a peaceful one! Beware of the chipmunks! We tried to stop for a snack break, but within minutes were swarmed by chipmunks from all directions climbing on our packs and trying to jump on our laps. We decided it was best to take quick breaks and eat lunch after we finished the trail.

One of the many chipmunks attempting to steal our lunch!

Pictures describe the views better than words!

Accommodation recommendation:

Kelowna has plenty of accommodation options to choose from. Since we were staying in the area for 4 days, we opted to stay at a lovely condo-style Airbnb downtown for 2 nights. Then, treated ourselves to The Royal Kelowna hotel for the last 2 nights.

Enjoying some rosé at the Airbnb’s rooftop fireplace!

The Airbnb had a great rooftop patio with propane fire places and city views. We enjoyed some rosé and played card games well into the night (our favorite board game, Dominion, to be specific).

View from The Royal Kelowna rooftop pool

Nighttime swimming in the pool

Enjoying our room’s porch and watching the ducks at The Royal Kelowna Hotel!

The Royal Kelowna hotel had a fantastic rooftop pool with views of Okanagan Lake. It was conveniently located steps from the downtown waterfront boardwalk and beach. We enjoyed sipping local Okanagan Valley wines on the porch and watching the ducks quack pass us.

The Okanagan Lake’s boardwalk in beautiful Kelowna, steps from our hotel room

Final thoughts:

I definitely plan on biking the Myra Canyon Trail again! The trail is easy to access with an abundance of gorgeous views, isn’t too strenuous, and we enjoyed learning about this site’s history!

Kelowna is a fairly inexpensive vacation destination if you live in Washington State which is only a short road trip away!

To learn more about the history of the Kettle Valley Railway, check out www.kettlevalleyrail.org/about/

Want more hiking and travel content? Add your email to the subscribe box below. Happy travel planning!

Pin for later!

• Pinterest